Rail-joint.



S LESCHZINER.

RAIL JOINT.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. I9, 1913.

Patented Apr. 18, 1916.

WITNESSES:

A TTOR/VEY nib.

SIEGFRIED LESCHZINER, 01E NEWARK, NEW JERSEY.

BAIL-JOINT.

Specification of Letters Patent. Paytlgnenflgaedl Apr, fig, jlglllfi.

Application filed March 19, 1913. Serial No. 755,284.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, SIEGFRIED LESOH- vamen, a cltizen of the United States, re-

siding in the city of Newark, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Rail-Joints, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it pertains to make, construct, and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawingsyand to letters of reference marked thereon, forming a part of this specification.

The object of my invention is to provide a continuous rail, by the use of tenon-pins provided with suitable contacts which engage with apertures ,formed in the ends of the rail and by which the settling of the rails at the joint, one below the other, is entirely overcome, and at the same'time, so attach them that they may freely expand and contract under influence of heat and cold without unduly opening any one joint.

A further object of my invention is to simplify the structure of a rail joint so as to render the same positive yet effective in.

operation, simple. in construction and durable in use.

Other objects will appear fromthe description hereinafter given, and my invenvention rests in the combinations and arrangements of parts which will be hereinafter fully described and specifically defined in the appended claims.

In carrying out my invention, I make use of the structure illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- 4 Figure 1 represents a side elevation of in invention. Fig. 2 represents a transverse section taken on lines w-w of Fig). 1, and look ing in the direction indicated y the arrow. Fig.- 3 represents an enlarged side elevation of the pin with its at ached contacts. Fig. 4 represents an end view of the same. Fig.

' 5 represents a fragmentary view of the under side of the rail, illustrating the slots whereby the rail is held .firmly down to the plate but permitted to expand freely longitudinally; and Fig. 6 represents a fragmentary plan view of the metal plate to which the rails are secured.

Similar letters of reference refer to like parts throughout the specification and drawin s.

n the drawings, a and I) represent the ends of the rails adjacent to the joint. The rails are of ordinary construction and are bored out at their ends as indicated at 0 to receive a tenon-pin d, which fits snugly therein. As the holes exactly coincide and the pin fits them snugly, it will be seen that one rail cannot, when the joint is made, be

pressed below or raised above the other. In order that a rail may be readily removed for repair, I prefer to make the hole in one rail as deep or deeper than the entire length of the pin. The deep .hole may be made in either rail or both rails, if desired. 6 represents a series of holes drilled in the pin, so that when it is desired to remove a rail, the end of an ordinary pin of metal approximately fitting the hole in the pin may be inserted in the holes and the pin gradually forced backward or forward. Instead of the holes 6 or in addition thereto, I provide in the ends of the pin at suitable threaded holes 79 to receive the end of a threaded rod by means of which I am enabled to withdraw the pin from the rail.

f, f represent spring contact plates for electrical purposes secured in any convenient manner to the pin, preferably in grooves formed therein, and held in position by means of screws g, and so arranged that when the ends of the pin are inserted in the ends of the rails, a portion of the spring has frictional engagement with the rail in order to make proper electrical contact therewith.

i represents a metal plate to which the free ends of the rails are secured by means of bolts 1', which pass through suitable holes 1' in the plate 6, and through elongated holes or slots formed in the base of the rails a and 6, whereby the rails are held firmly down to the plate, but permitted to expand freely longitudinally. The bolts 3' are provided with square heads Z, which are fitted in square recesses g in the bottom of the plate 6 to prevent the same from turning. Washers m, the under sides of which are beveled to correspond to the bevel of the base of the rails a and b are employed and clamped down upon the base of the rail by means of the lock nuts n.

The metal plate z is provided with two longitudinally-arranged marginal flanges or guides o, between which the bases of the rails are fitted to keep the rails at all times properly alined. ll prefer to employ a short- Tlt platei is secured by spikes t or other means. The headed end of the spikes t engages with the top surface of the base of the rail and the bodies thereof engage with suitable recesses u formed in the longitudinally-arranged marginal flanges o of theplate i and extend into and are firmly secured in any convenient manner in the concrete tie s.

I am aware that dowel-pins have been employed as 'fasteningsat rail-joints, but I am not aware that a dowel-pin provided with contacts, adapted to make contact between the rails, has ever been employed. The construction of the guide-plate provided with the marginal guides and the plurality of square apertures together with the elonlimited to the exact embodiments shown, but may be modified in various ways in the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

1. The combination of two rails, provided with alined bores in the tread portions of the adjacent ends of said rails, and a dowel pin provided with electrical contacts arranged in said. bores near the ends thereof, the ends of said pin'being further provided with means whereby the same may be withdrawn from the rails.

2. The combination of two rails, provided with alined bores in the tread portions of the adjacent ends of said rails, and a contact pin arranged therein, and provided with spring contacts arranged in grooves near the ends of said pin adapted to make contact with said rails, and means provided in the ends of said pin and on the exterior thereof, whereby the same may be withdrawn from the rails.

This. specification signed and witnessed this seventeenth day of March, 1913.

SIEGFRIED LESCHZINER. Witnesses:

A'fwoon L. DE Cosrnn, FREDK C. Freeman. 

